Isaiah 53:5: But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed.

How do I become a Catholic ?

When someone wants to become a Catholic, the normal procedure is to make an appointment to go and see your local Catholic priest. You can try and get him after Sunday Mass, but he might be busy then, so it is probably better to telephone. When you see him, he will make you welcome and invite you to talk about your desire to become a Catholic.

What happens next depends partly on local circumstances, partly on how much faith background you have and of what type. Many parishes have a small group of Catholics and “enquirers” meeting together once a week for several months or longer to explore what being a Catholic means. At the end of this process, known as the RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) those who wish and are ready become Catholics, usually at Easter.

Other parishes do not have the RCIA, and arrange for one-to-one conversations with a priest or catechist. The needs of the enquirer are naturally paramount. You are welcome to begin attending Mass at your local Catholic Church whenever you wish, though you would not be able to receive communion yet.

You are free to approach any priest anywhere, but it makes sense to go to your local Church, which will be most convenient for you if you do decide to become a Catholic.

Excerpts of the Pope's Sermon on the Feast of the Sacred Heart 2010

The most important of those texts in today’s liturgy is Psalm 23(22) – “The Lord is my shepherd” – in which Israel at prayer received God’s self-revelation as shepherd, and made this the guide of its own life. “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want”: this first verse expresses joy and gratitude for the fact that God is present to and concerned for us. The reading from the Book of Ezechiel begins with the same theme: “I myself will look after and tend my sheep” (Ez 34:11). God personally looks after me, after us, after all mankind. I am not abandoned, adrift in the universe and in a society which leaves me ever more lost and bewildered. God looks after me. He is not a distant God, for whom my life is worthless.

Another part of this sermon

“Your rod and your staff – they comfort me”: the shepherd needs the rod as protection against savage beasts ready to pounce on the flock; against robbers looking for prey. Along with the rod there is the staff which gives support and helps to make difficult crossings. Both of these are likewise part of the Church’s ministry, of the priest’s ministry. The Church too must use the shepherd’s rod, the rod with which he protects the faith against those who falsify it, against currents which lead the flock astray. The use of the rod can actually be a service of love. Today we can see that it has nothing to do with love when conduct unworthy of the priestly life is tolerated. Nor does it have to do with love if heresy is allowed to spread and the faith twisted and chipped away, as if it were something that we ourselves had invented. As if it were no longer God’s gift, the precious pearl which we cannot let be taken from us. Even so, the rod must always become once again the shepherd’s staff – a staff which helps men and women to tread difficult paths and to follow the Lord.

From the Catechism..

The Holy Eucharist

1324 The Eucharist is "the source and summit of the Christian life."136 "The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch."137

Quote

Our Lord Jesus to St. Faustina - My daughter, just as you prepare in My presence, so also you make your confession before Me. The person of the priest is, for Me, only a screen. Never analyse what sort of a priest it is that I am making use of; open your soul in confession as you would to Me, and I will fill it with My light. (1725)